Train in Japan Lets Riders Pay for Tickets with Candy Bars

Nestlé is inviting travelers in Japan to board the Sanriku Railway, where they can pay to ride the special trains with Kit Kats

The Daily News

The Kit Kat Train leaves the station soon, and you'll be able to hitch a ride to Northern Japan until next May.

All aboard the chocolate wafer express! Nestlé is allowing travelers in Japan who are using the Sanriku Railway to pay using Kit Kats. You heard that right. In Japan, you can now pay for a train ticket in chocolate bars.

In case you’re wondering, no, Willy Wonka is not behind the initiative — it’s part of an attempt to drum up tourism in Northern Japan following the devastating effects of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. Nestlé has even decorated the train cars and a few stations with images of cherry blossoms especially for the occasion, which symbolize hope in Japanese culture.

The Sanriku Railway was heavily damaged after the earthquake, and the company actually began donating 20 yen each time a Kit Kat bar was exchanged. Relief workers have begun the practice of exchanging these candy bars because “Kitto-Katsu” means “you will surely win.”

The Kit Kat ticket promotion will be available from now until May 2015.

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